War in Gaza: Israel takes fire from two Seattle City Council members

Two Seattle City Council members have used their offices to enter debate over the war between Israel and Hamas, one calling for a complete halt of U.S. aid to Israel and the other for a “public briefing” directed at Israel’s military tactics and U.S. weaponry.

Seattle’s Socialist City Council member Kshama Sawant: She wants “immediate end” to U.S. military aid for Israel. (AP photo)

The council often goes far afield from Seattle-centric issues, but Nick Licata and Kshama Sawant have crossed the Atlantic and Mediterranean with letters to President Obama and Congress.

“We call on President Obama, the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate to issue a formal statement denouncing Israel’s siege and blockade of Gaza and the occupation of the West Bank: We also call for an immediate end to all U.S. government military aid for Israel,” said a letter from Sawant, which only she has signed.

Licata, a 1960′s-era activist, spoke up Wednesday. He sent off a letter calling on leaders of Congress for a “public briefing on the tragic bombings (by Israel) of UN facilities in Gaza.”

“Its purpose would be to determine if innocent deaths could have been avoided and, if so, whether the US bears some responsibility,” Licata wrote to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Speaker John Boehner.

The focus of “responsibility” — read blame — would be on the United States and Israel.

“Our culpability could stem from the recognition that the U.S. funds a substantial portion of Israel’s military budget. … The investigation should not be conducted with any political agenda, but should instead be an audit of how U.S. foreign aid may be a contributing factor in the Gaza crisis.”

Hamas, and its rocket attacks on Israel, would not be a focus of the scrutiny Licata calls for.

“The U.S. has declared Hamas a terrorist organization, and thus we have no direct responsibility for their actions that would warrant a similar briefing,” Licata wrote. “Obviously, however, their shelling of innocent Israelis is likewise worthy of international scrutiny.”

Councilman Nick Licata: “The investigation should not be conducted with any political agenda.”

The prospects for such a one-way “investigation” are nil. Both Reid and Boehner are vocal supporters of Israel. Boehner and such fellow Republican leaders as Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, of Washington, have sought political advantage from the crisis.

Very few members of Congress, and just one Washington lawmaker, U.S. Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Washington, have been vocally critical of Israel.

“As a physician, I am distressed by reports that Israel has attacked hospitals, ambulences and medical personnel in its ongoing offensive in the Gaza Strip,” McDermott said in a recent statement. He argued that Hamas’ hidden weapons are an “invalid excuse” for such military actions.

Licata’s proposed investigation is much milder than a letter that Sawant recently asked her Council colleagues to sign. None have done so.

With a brief reference to Hamas rocket attacks and “the ordinary people of Israel,” the Socialist council member takes a hard line: Blame Israel and end U.S. military aid for the Jewish state.

“Security and peace will never be achieved on the basis of the current (Israeli) occupation and blockades,” Sawant said in the statement.

“The path to protecting the legitimate interests of the Palestinian people as well as the ordinary people of Israel lies first and foremost in ending the illegal building of settlements in the Palestinian territories and an end to Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories.”

Sawant, active in the Socialist Alternative movement, has dueled with radio interviewers when they have asked whether she considers Hamas a terrorist organization.

Licata does note a unanimous U.S. Senate resolution declaring that Israel has a right to defend itself.

Under the city’s new district system, all nine Seattle City Council seats will be up for election next year. The council’s tendency to go far afield will be one issue facing voters at home.